Q&A for: 8-Sep-05
471. Q:
I lost around 12-13 kgs in a period of the 3 previous months.I used cardio+diet+weight training together but my weight training was stable(not progressive)meaning that i was exercising always on same kgs.Did this weight training help me not to lose any muscles during my efforts to get leaner?Also now i reached a point where i do nothing for some days and still lose kgs while eating normal like before.How this can happen?People at gym adviced me to try some bulk up eat more and almost eliminate all cardio i do.This should help me obtain muscles in time and gain some kgs more.Also i should eat a lot more then now.I would appreciate your opinions on all these.
A:
Unless you used very light weights, the weight training you did helped you preserve some muscle that you would've lost otherwise. Of course, if you did progressive weight training where you upped the weights as you got stronger you would've had even better results. Your weight loss was also on the fast side, about a kilo per week, when optimally you would lose it at about a kilo every two weeks. So you probably did lose some muscle in the process, but I'm pretty certain you lost plenty of fat as well.
Your metabolism is high now, thanks to a good diet and exercising and that's why you're continuing to lose weight even when you do nothing. That will stop soon if you stop the diet and exercise.
Finally, the people in the gym gave you the right advice about bulking up (if obtaining more muscle is your goal). You will need to eat more to gain weight (slowly! As slow as 1 kilo per month) and continue weight training, preferably whole-body and progressive. If you fill out the Fitness Guide you will get a complete diet + training suggestion. Alternatively, you can just start slowly adding calories (mainly carbs and some protein) to your existing diet until you start gaining weight. And switch to progressive weight training, of course. Remember to gain weight very slowly to avoid unwanted fat gains. Good luck!
472. Q:
in the no equipment workout guide it says pullups...how would you do pullups without equipment?
A:
You got me :) Yes, you do need a chinup bar or at least an outdoor siwng set or a sturdy tree branch to do pullups. A basic chinup bar that fits in a doorway can usually be found for as low as $15 in any sporting goods store (and there're many fancier and more expensive variations, of course). If you have no other equipment at all, a chinup bar is one of the best values for the money.
473. Q:
Hi, im a muslim and therefore will be fasting throughout the Islamic month of Ramadan (lunar) meaning i will only be able to have two meals a day - one before dawn, and one at sunset. I am on your suggested diet right now but how would I go about fasting the month and still losing weight since im not able to have more than two meals?
A:
My advice will be to make that morning and evening meal quite a bit bigger than before. Fasting during the day is not the best for losing weight, but your religion comes first, of course. So try to make the breakfast bigger, especially use more oatmeal and/or fruits, so you have a lot of carbs in there (in addition to protein and some fats). For the evening meal, go lighter on carbs (have a lot of green non-starchy veggies) but have a lot of protein and some fats (olive oil). After Ramadan is over slowly switch back to your previous diet if you still need to continue losing fat. And continue weight training during Ramadan if possible.
474. Q:
I love peanut butter sandwiches. Any way to keep them in my diet?
A:
If you're trying to lose fat, they're really not optimal, but if you absolutely love them, then you can maybe afford one a day. Make sure you use whole-wheat bread, natural peanut butter (Should have only peanuts and salt in the ingredient list. And don't use a ton of it! :), and add a source of protein. Good choices there would be fat-free or low-fat cottage cheese or whey protein powder. Some people also swear that tuna goes well with peanut butter, but I've never tested that out myself :) But do make sure you have a lot of protein of some sort to go with the carbs of bread and fats of the peanut butter. Use it as a complete meal in the first half of the day or before weight-training. It could make an OK breakfast. But don't eat it more than once a day and make sure you eat lots of veggies in your other meals.
475. Q:
Before i was eating less in order to lose fat.Now i became thin but i wanna obtain some muscles also in order to look better.I do only weight training now.Should i eat more then before in order to achieve that?What happens if i continue eat the same as before?
A:
Yes, you need to eat enough to be slowly gaining weight and need heavy whole-body weight training to develop muscles (otherwise that new weight will just be fat). Please fill out the Fitness Guide specifying 'Gain Muscle' as your goal for a complete diet and training suggestion.
476. Q:
In a question i saw that u dont recommend fruit juices in order to lose fat but only simple fruits instead.If i wanna bulk up can i drink juices ?Is it ok?Also i dont eat many vegetables but i eat many many fruits.Is it the same thing?
A:
I would not recommend juices on the bulk any more than on the cut. When you're bulking you're trying to gain muscle while minimizing fat gains. You're also constantly overeating (in order to gain weight) so your body is always making decisions whether to put those extra calories into new fat reserves or into building new muscle -- don't give it an extra reason to add extra fat by feeding it with simple sugars in juices!
Fruits and vegetables are both good on the bulk, but in general you should still eat more veggies than fruits. Veggies are more mineral and vitamin-rich than fruits and fruit calories are, after all, still fairly simple sugars, compared to fiberous complex carbs in veggies. Finally, it's very easy to overeat fruits and it's very difficult to overeat veggies (except potatoes and corn maybe), so you have to be very careful when eating a lot of fruits -- you may start gaining weight too fast and just end up putting on a lot of new fat and only a little muscle.
477. Q:
How do i understand when iam able to exercise with more kgs with progressive weight training?And in how much time should i begin see some changes in me?
A:
You just need to pay attention to how easily you can lift the weights you're lifting. If you're able to perform 12 reps in a set of some exercise in good form and still feel like you could do another rep or three, then it's time to up the weight for that exercise. The last few reps should be quite strenuous (which doesn't mean you contort your body to perform them, but that your muscles maybe crying for rest but you push on with perfect form!) and in general 12 is the upper limit of reps for most exercises. So if 12 reps start seeming easy or even only moderately difficult, then it's time to up the weights. It's not uncommon for your strength to increse 50% or more in just the first month or two of training!
As to your second question, as I said, strength changes should be noticeable immediately and you may well be increasing weights every workout when you're just starting out. Body composition changes will be slower (and remember, for both losing fat and building muscle the slow progress is the good, lasting progress!) but after the first month or so you should definitely start noticing changes and after one year of good diet and training you may well be a completely different person!
478. Q:
What is better ? beef or chicken.I have heard u mustnt eat many beef cause this way u have more chances for having cancer later.
A:
Both are fine. With both you need to make sure to select leanest meat possible. For chicken that usually means skinless chicken breast (which is almost entirely pure protein) and for meat it's 90% or higher leanness (which is about half protein/half fat by calories, at 90% lean). If you're concerned about red meat, then you can skip entirely and go with only chicken or fish or other sources of protein.
All the studies I have seen that found a supposed link between red meat and cancer did not make any attempt to differentiate about the rest of the person's diet. A typical red meat-eater has an extremely unhealthy diet that's full of fatty meat, white bread, sodas, and other junk while nearly devoid of vegetables, fruits, or whole grains. I've never seen a study done where they examine red meat-eaters who eat only lean meats and a ton of green veggies along with fruits and whole grains (which is the kind of diet I recommend, whether you're trying to lose fat or build muscle). Such a study comparing health-conscious red meat-eaters and, say, vegetarians would be a lot more telling about the true dangers or lack thereof in red meat.
But as I said, if you have concerns about it, just substitute red meats with other protein sources.
479. Q:
What would I do if I wanted to remain at my current muscle mass but still lose fat?
A:
That's what this site is all about! All the articles and answers I write are targeted at this exact goal: how to lose fat while preserving your muscle (or its close cousin: how to gain muscle without gaining fat). If you're significantly overweight, as long as you lose weight reasonably slowly and have a healthy diet and workout program you'll be able to lose many pounds of fat without losing much if any muscle. However as you get leaner, it becomes harder and harder to lose the remaining fat without also losing some muscle. The amount of muscle lost depends on many factors, some are in your control and some aren't. These include your genetics, age, health, the quality of your diet and exercise programs, the discipline with which you follow them, and the speed of your weight loss. Look around this site to find many articles and tips on how to optimize the fat loss.
480. Q:
I can't eat six times/day. Can I eat 4 or 5 times and slightly increase the calories in each meal and still achieve the same results?
A:
By all means! You have to take my suggested diets and make them fit your life. You may not get 100% results, but 90% or 95% is still pretty darn good.
482. Q:
I want to lose about 10 pounds in 6 weeks for a wedding I'm in. I have been working out 4 times/week for a few months, and I eat fairly well during the day (including 1/4 c. plain oats and 1 banana for breakfast EVERY morning, a tuna sandwich on low carb whole grain bread almost every day for lunch, and usually chicken & veggies for dinner). My other one or two meals, however, aren't always the best choices (for example, I had a medium sized bowl of spaghetti for my 3rd meal today). And I am weak against desserts, indulging in them after dinner around twice/week. Can I expect to not lose any weight this way?
A:
10 pounds in 6 weeks is certainly doable. It's tought to predict whether you'll be able to pull it off with 2 cheat meals every day. It depends oin how good your training is and how big those cheat meals are. I'd say make sure you train well, include both weights and some cardio and track your weight. If you don't lose 3-4 pounds in the first two weeks, then toughen up and pass on those deserts :)
483. Q:
What BF% is low for a woman and what is average?
A:
Average BF% for a woman in US is about 25%. I would consider anything under 20% low for a woman. Under 12% BF is considered dangerous for a woman's health.
484. Q:
Could I safely lose 3 pounds/week?
A:
It's not going to endanger your health, but it's faster than I recommend for a sustained fat loss. If you lose this fast, unless you're very overweight, you will be certainly losing significant amount of muscle in the process which will eventually lower your metabolism, halt the weight loss, and make yourself very vulnerable to new fat accumulation. I strongly recommend staying in 1-2 pound/week weight loss range for most people, the slower the better.
485. Q:
What is a realistic time frame to lose two inches off my waist if I were to follow your program?
A:
If you're overweight, I would say one inch per month is a good target. My approach is not about losing weight quickly, it's about LOSING FAT FOR GOOD. By slowly losing fat and fat only, you ensure that your metabolism stays high, that the weight/fat loss can continue for a very long time, and that the fat will never come back. Contrast that with the many gimmicky diets that lose you 20 pounds in one month most of which won't even be fat (it'll be muscle and water), which will completely destroy your metabolism, and which almost guarantee that all that weight and more will come back in a matter of months.
So please don't be put off by the seemingly slow pace -- you may only lose one inch per month, but you'll be able to continue for 6 months or 1 year or even longer and completely transform yourself for the better with time. That's something that's not possible for the vast majority of dieters today who lose a bunch of weight quickly only to see it creep back and become worse off than when they started.
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